The San Francisco 49ers have finally paid quarterback Brock Purdy, marking a noted step for head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Finally, the rumors have been put to rest.
The San Francisco 49ers won’t be trading Brock Purdy to avoid paying him. They won’t task head coach Kyle Shanahan with turning another unheralded passer into a competitive quarterback. They won’t be franchise tagging Purdy or pushing off the inevitable.
On Friday, the 49ers signed Purdy to a five-year extension worth $265 million, with $181 million guaranteed.
It won’t come without criticism. Purdy, despite his accomplishments, isn’t a full-fledged superstar. He can’t carry a team on his back without physical tools. He might not be able to find success without Shanahan.
But in locking in Purdy for the long haul, San Francisco guarantees that he will have the game’s best offensive mind behind him. And it’s part of why the 49ers are surprising winners of the Purdy contract extension.
That conversation starts with the price. Quarterback contracts will inevitably increase over time. It’s why Jimmy Garoppolo was the sport’s highest-paid quarterback with $27.5 million of average annual value – a deal that would rank fourth-lowest among veteran starters in 2025.
At $53 million per year, Purdy currently ranks seventh in the NFL in average annual value. By guaranteed money, he ranks eighth. Purdy might not be the seventh- or eighth-best quarterback or football. But high-level starters cashing in with extensions tend to set the market and make a brief cameo at the top of the Over the Cap leaderboards. Purdy won’t, and that in itself is a win.
Further, the path for the 49ers remains similar to what it was before the extension. This core, and its two Super Bowl appearances, is aging and in desperate need of reinforcement. The NFL Draft was always going to be what replenished this roster. Free agency simply isn’t an efficient enough market, and a handful of stars weren’t likely extension candidates.
Purdy’s deal will make those margins slimmer, but not impossible to work within. If San Francisco can stack strong draft classes and find talent where it’s not supposed to – undrafted free agency and on cheaper free agent deals – there’s no reason why this team can’t continue to compete.
Ultimately, this is Shanahan’s team. And Shanahan has finally found a quarterback who can follow his lead before the snap and win without him when things go to hell after it. Purdy is by no means a perfect quarterback. But he does enough, both in and out of structure, to earn his coach’s trust.
A lot can change for San Francisco and its current roster in the coming years. Fans can rest assured that at a reasonable price, Purdy won’t be one of those questions.
